In the final lap of a national series event in Canberra on the weekend, any mountain biker’s worst nightmare unfolded for John Reid, 13.
Hot on the heels of the race leader, Reid stacked it, and fumbled around to get back on the bike as he watched two riders overtake him.
Frustration fuelled his comeback; Reid overtook the two riders just in time to claim second, but was too far behind to catch up to the gold medallist.
“I was a bit disappointed, I was sitting on the guy who won feeling really good when I dropped back to fourth, so I had a bit of work to do,” Reid said.
Considering it was his first national series event, Reid was blown away by the result.
“I was going in it for a bit of a laugh, I would have been happy with top 15,” Reid said.
A week earlier, Reid came second in the downhill event at the Thredbo MTB Cannonball Festival.
Unlike many of his competitors, Reid swears by cross training, devoting 70 per cent of his efforts to the road bike to build up fitness and strength.
I was going in it for a bit of a laugh, I would have been happy with top 15.
- National silver medallist John Reid
“Wagga Cycling Club has been so good for him, over the years he has really benefited from that foundation,” his dad Mal Reid said.
A month ago he was part of state championship winning team with school mates, the TRACsuits.
“That was a good, hard hit out, and a lot of blokes who raced that were in Canberra, so I knew what I was in for,” Reid said.
The Canberra race was the second of six Mountain Bike Australia cross country events, and Reid plans to compete at two more.
He won’t make it to the next event, which takes place in WA, and the fourth event which takes place in QLD, but number five and six are a bit closer to home in Thredbo and Bright.
Reid’s aiming for a gold medal at both, which will put him in good stead to take out the series.
Remarkably, he will have another shot at the series, as he’s a year younger than many competitors in the under 15s division.
Reid is coached by former world champion Jodie Willett, and led by mentor, and Wagga rider Daniel Beresford.
“It’s good to get a few tips on cornering and preserving your energy from Dan,” Reid said.
Reid’s growing accustomed to silver; pitted against Beresford in the local daylight savings series each fortnight.
“He’s a good baseline to work towards,” Reid said.
Reid feels as though 12 weeks of “brutal” training has paid off and has dreams of one day competing in the world championships.
